Stay or go? Why Darnell Shields decided to stay in the Austin that raised him

Much of the 1970s in Austin offered a landscape defined by vibrant green spaces, well-resourced public schools and thriving local commercial corridors. For Austin-native, Darnell Shields, growing up on Chicago’s West Side meant witnessing a high quality of life before widespread disinvestment took hold in the decade that followed. Experiencing that era of stability gave Shields a clear baseline for what a thriving neighborhood could look like — and a standard he felt determined to restore. “From seeing higher times and a good foundation to now contending with the effects of all those changes … it shaped my will to approach making a difference in my community,” Shields said. However, as corporate closures, white flight and industrial job losses affected the neighborhood in the mid-to-late 1980s, Shields began witnessing a gradual decline in the resources and opportunities available to residents. Like many young people growing up in Austin, Shields was encouraged to pursue su